


Chrysalis

by LelianasSong



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: College AU, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Modern AU, tumblr post prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-23
Updated: 2015-07-23
Packaged: 2018-04-10 21:23:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4408172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LelianasSong/pseuds/LelianasSong
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are moments when all Elena needs to figure things out, is a push in the right direction.</p><p>Tumblr Post Prompt - ‘we both got kicked out of our rooms because our roommates are having sex so now we’re standing in the hallway avoiding each other’ AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So in order to get over my writer's block, I decided that I would try my hand at doing a prompt on tumblr. However, this was supposed to be a oneshot and now it's got three parts and I can only apologise for the fact that I did not plan this. This is what happens when I write things with Elena in them, she takes me in a completely different direction than I had originally planned!!
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

**I**

Elena leant against the wall outside of her room, scrolling aimlessly through her phone. She sighed, slumping slightly as she cursed whatever godforsaken deity had decided that it would be the optimum time for her roommate, Rowan, to have invited her girlfriend over. Isabela certainly had more space for them to be fucking than Rowan did and yet here they were, keeping Elena from pretty much doing the same as her present activity, except in the comfort of her room.

“Alright, I will leave you two alone, but Leliana, you owe me lunch tomorrow, okay?”

The sound of a voice pulled Elena’s attention away from her phone as she looked up in the direction of the sound. Sure enough, she saw the door next to hers open and a very frustrated looking Josephine Montilyet walked out, fixing her bag over her navy blue jacket. Elena watched as the woman didn’t seem to notice her for a moment, instead pulling out her phone and sighing at the time that was displayed on her screen. A smirk pulled at Elena’s lips as she chuckled, shaking her head at the frustration that seemed to practically radiate off of the other woman.

Her smile only grew as Josephine lifted her eyes to look at her, a small frown furrowing her brow as she processed just who was standing in front of her. The woman narrowed her hazel eyes, fixing Elena with a stare that she was certain would have stopped anyone else in their tracks coming from someone as aimable of Josephine. However, for the past few weeks, Elena had found that expression levelled at her far too often to be taken aback by it.

“Do not say a word,” Josephine sighed, shaking her head and leaning against the wall beside Elena.

“Why not? Tired of me already, Josephine?” Elena asked, chuckling dryly as she arched an eyebrow. “I thought you were civil to everyone?”

“I have not had a good day. And this is me being civil towards you, Elena. I simply do not wish to speak right now, if that is alright by you?” the other woman said, taking her eyes away from her phone for only a second before returning her attentions to it.

For a few moments, they stood in silence, with Josephine pointedly looking down at her phone whilst Elena studied the woman out of the corner of her eyes. She did look rather stressed today. Her usually immaculate bun was slightly messy and her brow was furrowed even as she continued to ignore Elena’s presence. For once, Elena felt as though it truly was not her fault as to why Josephine was in a bad mood, even though she honestly had not tried to gain Josephine’s ire. Despite their less than stellar past with each other.

“Please stop studying me, Elena,” Josephine said, finally putting her phone away and turning to look at Elena directly. “You lost that right when you…”

“Is this about that night? Josie, I already apologised a thousand times, when are you going to let it go?” Elena asked, crossing her arms defensively over her chest.

“When you realise that you’ve hurt me and stop pretending like this isn’t your fault,” Josephine replied, frowning again.

“I… know.”

“Then why not act like it? Of all the… Elena why can’t you just give me an answer? We were… I was _half-naked_ and then you just left! You just walked right out of that door and told me you needed to freshen up and you left!” Josephine pointed her finger accusingly at Elena as she tried to get her words out from trembling lips.

Elena had never seen her quite so furious before and she knew it was her fault. Her stomach twisted, her chest tightening as she looked at Josephine’s furious expression and the clenched hand at her side. She looked away, biting the inside of her mouth as she tried to right her thoughts. There were so many things that needed to be said, so many apologies and explanations that had not yet been made and yet Elena could not bring herself to voice them. How could she, when she did not know the reason herself?

“You… will not even look at me now?” Josephine’s voice cracked slightly, sending a jolt of pain through Elena’s tightening chest. “I know that you just went to sleep with someone else. What was her name? Narissa? She was bragging about it in class and I had to listen as I realised where you had gone to… Elena, why?”

Closing her eyes, Elena took a deep breath, trying to sort out her thoughts. It was hard to, in this hallway where anyone else could walk by, where her heart could be laid bare in front of witnesses who would probably not hesitate to talk about how the ice queen had actually managed to feel something other than lust or disdain. She couldn’t have that. Not when she had so perfectly crafted that image to the others, to those who did not know her and never would.

“May we talk somewhere else?” Elena finally said, turning her eyes to look at Josephine.

Josephine crossed her arms across her chest, tapping her foot and arching an eyebrow at Elena as if she was completely indignant about the request. Perhaps she was. Perhaps it was too late for whatever revelation Elena could place on the table to make Josephine see. To make herself see.

“Where did you have in mind? Our bedrooms are clearly out of the question,” she finally said, sighing in defeat.

“How about we go have coffee? Or dinner? I haven’t eaten tonight and I could always ask Hestia to fit us in at the restaurant? Besides, she will feel inclined to give us a table after I tell her that her twin is currently preventing me from the peaceful enjoyment of my own room,” Elena said, placing her hands on her hips as she tried to recompose herself.

“That… would be fine, I think,” Josephine replied, a small smile quirking at the corners of her lips.

“Excellent, let’s go then. I’ll pay for everything so you don’t even need to worry!” The blonde said, picking her bag up from the position at her feet and slinging it over her shoulder.

Gesturing with her hand, Elena waited as Josephine walked on ahead, heading to the staircase that would lead outside and to the short walk away from the restaurant that Rowan’s twin sister had been working at for the semester. Waiting for a moment, Elena watched as Josephine walked, wringing her hands slightly as she considered what she was going to say over dinner. God, she had fucked this up already and there was a part of her that was terrified that she would only make this worse.

“Are you coming, Elena?” Josephine asked, tapping her foot impatiently from the top of the stairs.

Sighing Elena hurried after her, the feeling of anxiety enveloping her with each step, each single second that drew her closer to the conversation that she had been avoiding for weeks.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just for clarification, if anyone needs it, Hestia and Rowan are twins because I decided that in every modern AU I have, my two main Hawkes are twins and no one can stop me! MWAHAHAH!

**II**

They had spoken little since sitting down at the small booth that Hestia had found for them in the back of the restaurant, save for the general beginning comments about how kind the owner of the establishment had been to actually accept Hestia’s request that they be seated in one of the secluded booths despite business being fairly busy that night. It had been awkward to say the least, as Elena could practically feel the expectancy radiating off of Josephine as they had ordered and waited for their food.

It seemed like hours before the food had arrived and yet Elena could not bring herself to even begin to explain herself. She should have done this earlier, not waited until even the words in Elena’s own head sounded ridiculous and unbelievable, as if whatever response or reason she would give would simply be laughable in Josephine’s eyes. Which would not go down well, nor would it make Josephine feel any better and was that not the goal here?

As Elena put a piece of her steak into her mouth, she could not help but consider why she was doing this at all. What did she want? The answer seemed simple enough; for Josephine to feel better. It wasn’t even for herself, she just needed Josephine to not look at her as if she had torn her heart into tiny pieces, she wanted to mend those pieces until perhaps they could be friends once again.

“Elena, are you alright?” Josephine finally asked, putting her fork down on the side of her bowl of pasta.

“I… yes, of course,” Elena said, wiping her mouth on her napkin as she did so. “Why?”

“Well, we did not come here to simply sit here and not talk about anything,” she replied, leaning her head curiously on her hand. “I am all ears for whatever it is you have to say to me.”

“Do you not want to discuss this after we have finished eating? The food may go cold?”

“I find myself rather impatient this evening, Elena.”

“Josie…”

“Please do not call me that,” Josephine interrupted, raising a hand to silence the woman opposite her. “Now, please, explain to me why you left.”

Shifting slightly in her chair, Elena set down her knife and fork slowly, as she tried to find the words to begin. It was ridiculous, she was usually so good at this; of thinking on her feet and providing people with exactly what they want or need to hear. But she couldn’t do that here. No, she had to be honest, not hide behind some identity that had protected her for so long. It was odd, as she felt Josephine’s eyes bore directly into her, as if rooting around for the true Elena that she knew to be hiding somewhere beneath.

“I… Josephine, you have to understand that I never wanted to hurt you. Far from it! I was, in my own twisted way, trying to protect you. Which doesn’t excuse what I did, but that is one of the reasons for it. You deserved so much better than how I acted however, I know that,” Elena started, looking down at the steak on her plate as if it would somehow save her from this confession.

“You are right, I did not deserve that, Elena. No one does,” Josephine replied, a cold edge lining her words as she listened to Elena’s pathetic opening sentence.

The blonde flinched, glancing up at Josephine’s face, which seemed uncharacteristically impassive. As if the woman were trying her best not to let any emotions show across her face.

“I know…” she could not help but gulp as she clenched her hands slightly on the table. “Honestly, I do not know what came over me. First thing I know, we’re kissing and you’re undressing me and I was so very into what you were doing with your hands…”

Elena closed her eyes tightly for a moment, conjuring up the memory easily from the shallow recesses of her mind. It had been a moment she had re-played to herself constantly after all. The silence that lingered was not broken as Josephine merely looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to finish. So she took a deep breath, looking up at Josephine and meeting her eyes with grim determination.

“The next thing I knew I was looking down at you and I felt… well I do not know what I felt. I just saw the way your eyes were staring so eagerly into my own, the way your lips curled into a smile so beautiful I could hardly breathe and your arms tightening around my waist as if the only thing you had wanted for some time was to feel me close to you. And I found that I wanted that too, to be so close to you that I could barely breathe or think and I… I have never felt like the way you made me feel that night,” Elena said, closing her eyes tightly as she felt her chest tightening again and her throat constricting painfully as though she would finally fail at her goal to never cry in public. Not again.

“If you felt that way, why did you run?” Josephine questioned, her brow furrowed as if she could not quite understand. “You wanted me as much as I wanted you… yet… you were scared, weren’t you?”

Elena nodded, sinking into the back of her seat. She closed her eyes, shaking her head as she felt the prickling behind her eyes, warning her that if she were not careful, she would begin to cry in front of all of these people. Perhaps this had been a bad idea after all.

“Elena… you should have said something,” Josephine said softly, her face seeming to soften along with her voice. “I could have helped.”

“I… wasn’t thinking. I didn’t want to think! I just knew that I needed to get out of there because nothing good ever comes out of me feeling like that. I didn’t want you there helping me to give it a name, I just wanted it to go away. I wanted to forget…”

“And so you went to Narissa?”

She laughed suddenly, catchy Josephine off guard slightly. The woman gave her a peculiar look as the blonde sat up in her chair and leaned forwards into the conversation.

“Can I tell you a secret?” Elena whispered, chuckling softly even though she knew it seemed vastly inappropriate in such a serious conversation. “I didn’t sleep with Narissa.”

Seconds past and all Josephine did was blink in surprise, her eyes seemingly searching Elena’s face for any sign that she was merely lying. Those hazel eyes studied her, poking and reaching into every space in Elena’s mind until she was certain that she must have come up with nothing. Instead, Josephine relaxed visibly, her straightened back sagging slightly as though she had been released from some form of constraint that had kept her back tense for the whole evening.

“What did happened then?” Josephine asked, narrowing her eyes.

“I… well I went to her and there is no denying that we kissed for a bit. But then… well she went to touch me and I just… I couldn’t. I wanted to forget you and I wanted to forget that feeling in my chest when I looked at you but when I looked in Narissa’s face, I felt like I was going to be sick. I couldn’t do it, so I left,” Elena said simply, shaking her head. “She got angry of course, but she seemed rather placated when I told her she could tell people we did have sex. At that point, it didn’t matter if I couldn’t go through with it, I just wanted to push you away and I knew that, that would do it. It was so fucking foolish. I still cannot even believe I did it.”

Elena watched Josephine carefully, watching as she leant back in her chair and began to fiddle with her fingers. Her face was almost unreadable, mixed with a conflict that Elena couldn’t blame her for. It… the truth was foolish. It was ridiculous and whatever Elena had done made no sense in the grand scheme of things. She had not been thinking straight, had run away from everything when things had become too much and now she was watching as Josephine processed everything. Her mind working to come up with a solution to the problem that Elena’s actions had caused.

“This does not make up for the weeks I spent, hurt and afraid that I had done something wrong. You do realise how much what you did hurts, I hope?”

“I do.”

“What do you expect me to do with this information, Elena? What would you like me to say to you?”

“I don’t expect you to do anything. I would understand if you decided not to say anything to me ever again, or to tell me to go fuck myself, although you never have actually said that to me, no matter how much I know you’ve wanted to.”

“Oh? You know that do you?” Josephine giggled, shaking her head slightly as she went to take a bite out of her pasta once more.

“Your eyes might as well have been screaming it at me, Josie,” Elena chuckled, feeling her body ease gently as Josephine giggled again.

“Well, you may be correct on that. Still, I do not know what I want to do with that information, Elena. I… can understand why you did what you did. I knew what you felt about such things I had just hoped that maybe you would have felt… I thought foolishly that I would be an exception,” Josephine said sadly, looking down at her bowl and avoiding Elena’s eyes. “Instead, I spent these past few weeks thinking that you saw me as… someone not even worth your time.”

Her heart clenched, breaking into a million tiny pieces as she watched Josephine’s face drop, giving her some insight as to just what her actions had done. She had never wanted this. If anything, she had wanted to push Josephine away to spare her. Relationships and feelings; she just wasn’t good at those things and Josephine… well, Josephine deserved the world.

“I am so sorry, Josephine. I… you are worth more than I could ever begin to deserve,” Elena whispered, bowing her head in shame.

“Who are you to decide what I deserve or not?” Josephine snapped, her head snapping up even as she tried to calm herself down. “Although you are right, I deserved more than being treated this way.”

Elena nodded gently, knowing where this conversation was leading. Honestly, she would have been surprised if it hadn’t ended up this way. Josephine wouldn’t put up with Elena fuckng her over like that. Many people thought her to be kind, clever and empathetic, but she was more than that and Elena had known from the very moment that she had realised what she had done, that Josephine would not take what Elena had done. She wouldn’t come running back like someone else might do and Elena preferred it that way.

“I don’t think I’m particularly hungry anymore,” Josephine said, finally placing her fork into her bowl. “Can you take me home? I am certain Leliana and Elsa must be finished by now… also Rowan and Isabela.”

“You must not know Rowan and Isabela as well as you think,” Elena laughed, trying to ignore the disappointment that weighed heavily in her chest.

It was ridiculous of course. She deserved this and she hadn’t expected anything else. Perhaps more shouting or for Josephine to have actually laughed at her explanation, but certainly nothing better than what had actually happened.

Still, Josephine smiled at her as she waved Hestia over to take away their plates. The younger of the elder Hawke twins was smiling up until the point that she actually noticed the solemn nature of her friends. She said nothing, however, even as she brought the bill and cleared away their plates. The awkward lull from the beginning of the evening was back, except this felt worse, as Josephine sat pensively. She seemed to be mulling over Elena’s words in her mind, even as they left the building and returned back to their dorms.

It wasn’t until they had reached the doors to their rooms, both checking that it was safe to return by the all-clear texts on their phones that Josephine actually turned back to Elena.

“I appreciate you telling me the truth, Elena. I need to think about it some more and I’ll come speak to you soon, okay?” Josephine said, almost professionally, just as she was about to place her key in the lock.

“I… okay,” Elena replied, biting her lip gingerly as she watched Josephine carefully. “I guess I’ll see you around then, Josie?”

Josephine nodded, smiling sadly at Elena before letting herself into her room and disappearing out of sight. God, Elena thought, banging her head against her door, that could have certainly gone better. Sighing, she let herself into the room, only to find that her roommate and her girlfriend were nowhere to be seen. Instead a note sat upon her desk, Rowan’s messy scrawl covering the piece of paper.

_Thought you and Josephine could use the push to talk. You can thank us all later._

Scoffing, Elena stared at the note for awhile in disbelief. This had been their plan all along? No wonder it had been a massive coincidence that her and Josephine had ended up locked out on the same day at the exact same time! Typical! She supposed that Rowan and Elsa would have wanted her to stop moping and that Leliana had probably wanted Elena to tell the truth, for Josephine’s sake. Or perhaps it was also so Leliana did not have to kill her, which the woman had actually threatened to do at the beginning.

Exhaustion swept over her, draining her until all she wanted to do was collapse into her bed. She practically peeled her clothes off, only managing to pull on her shorts and shirt before crawling into bed and swaddling herself amongst the sheets. She knew she wouldn’t sleep though, not whilst her mind kept whirring away in the background, thinking of all the things that Josephine could possibly be thinking of right now.

Somewhere, in some completely ridiculous part of her mind, Elena almost hoped that Josephine would forgive her. That maybe she would give Elena another chance to actually make this better. To make certain that Josephine got the love that she deserved. That’s what this feeling was? After months of knowing Josephine and being her friend, of being intrigued and amused and entertained, of those few moments of weakness when Elena had given in before she had ran… she loved her, didn’t she?

A small tear slid from the corner of Elena’s eye as the realisation swept over her like a wave. The one person whom she could have actually been in love with and she had fucked it up. She had fucked it up so tremendously, so thoroughly, that it was most likely irreparable. For the first time, Elena hugged the duvet to her chest, allowing the tears to fall down her cheeks as she lay in bed. How could she have done this? How could she have let this happen?

Whatever came next, she knew that nothing would be as good as if she had only been rational to begin with. If only she hadn’t made a mistake that could have potentially cost her the one thing she had never expected to happen to her again: love.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to post all the parts at once... so no need to wait for any of these! YAAAAY!
> 
> I hope you liked this fic and if so, I am tempted to write more for this AU so if anyone wants more, please tell me? So I can figure out whether I want to break these two apart again or just fill you all with fluffy fluffy goodness!

**III**

 

The silence that engulfed Elena seemed neverending, as she lay motionless in her bed. She could not even begin to count how long she had been lying there for, with nothing except the sound of her breathing to keep her company. Perhaps it had been five minutes, perhaps it was closer to an hour, she certainly could not say.

Her thoughts had overcome her once more, as they had done for the past week that she had spent mulling over the events of her dinner with Josephine. It was silly, really, but there was a part of her, louder than it had been before, that told her that she really hoped that there was a chance that Josephine would knock on her door and grant her a second chance. If she did indeed ask what Elena wanted, there was no doubt in her mind that she would be able to look her old friend in the eyes and tell her that she wanted another chance. A fresh start.

Cynicism usually ruined such thoughts, but Elena refused to let it over power her this time. No, the hope she held, even as she found herself as torn up and anxious as she was, was better than giving up. It was better than lying here, with her mind spiralling into its old patterns of despair. She refused to let that happen again.

She let out a long sigh as she glanced over at her laptop and the work that she really should have been doing right now. At least it was extra stuff, for the first time, Elena truly felt thankful for the fact that she ended up being really particular about keeping on top of work, otherwise this would have been just another source of anxiety.

Closing her eyes, she tried to settle her mind. However, such attempts were short lived, when a loud knocking sounded from her door.

“Who is it?” Elena called, sitting up reluctantly and stretching her arms above her head.

“It’s Josephine! May I come in?” came the reply, muffled slightly through the door that separated them.

Hastily, Elena sat up properly, swinging her legs off of the bed at such a speed that she teetered slightly, trying to maintain her balance lest she fling herself fully onto the floor. She took a deep breath as she settled herself on the edge of her bed, smoothing down her blonde hair that seemed to be sticking up at the back. It was almost laughable, how quickly Elena had gone to preening herself in preparation for Josephine to enter the room, her lips twisting slightly as she contained the chuckle that threatened to leave her lips at her own behaviour.

“Yes, come in!” Elena drawled, leaning back casually as she watched the door open.

Josephine’s eyes looked towards her desk first before they managed to drift to the bed and land upon her. Her lips quirked into a small smile, as she entered the room, sending Elena’s heart skipping slightly within her chest. God, she hoped that smile was a good sign. It was certainly better than a serious frown would have been.

Silently, Josephine closed the door behind her, walking towards Elena and stopping just short of the bed. Elena watched as she stood there, her hands twitching at her sides as if she longed to move them and wring them in front of her, as she had been prone to do. It took a few moments before Josephine actually looked into Elena’s eyes, her lips pursing slightly as if she was thinking through what she was going to say before she said it.

“I… have thought on what we discussed last week,” Josephine said finally, moving to the side as she began to pace in front of where Elena sat. “Obviously, we both know that what happened cannot be repeated.”

Elena nodded in agreement. “Of course…”

“But that is not to say…” Josephine stopped for a second, looking at Elena with a serious expression. She bit her lip for a moment, looking into Elena’s eyes intensely as if she were once again trying to read her. “That is not to say that perhaps, it would not be reasonable to give you a second chance. That is, if you wanted a second chance?”

“I… you want to give me a second chance?” Elena asked skeptically, arching her eyebrow as Josephine seemed to give in to herself, her hands wringing in front of her.

“If you do not want one then I will understand. Perhaps we could simply be friends again? I do miss your regular presence at lunch and dinner,” she looked away once more as she said it, her hands twisting as surely as the knot in Elena’s stomach was.

Despite the amount of times Elena had played this conversation through in her head, along with every possible response she could give, her mind went blank. Perhaps it was the disbelief, that Josephine was stood in front of her, offering her a second chance, even though that was the very thing she had hoped for. Swallowing, Elena stood up, taking a step towards Josephine and placing her hand over Josephine’s.

Hazel eyes stared up at Elena imploringly, begging her to answer and to find an answer quickly. The blonde almost chuckled when she saw Josephine’s eyes flicker down to her lips, before fixing on her eyes again. Her stomach twisted further, her heart beating rapidly in her chest as she moved her hand to cup Josephine’s cheek. They stood in silence, as Elena’s fingers brushed reverently over Josephine’s skin, a soft caress that seemed to make the smaller woman shiver slightly.

“A second chance with you sounds perfect, Josie,” Elena whispered, leaning her head in closer until she could rest her forehead against Josephine’s.

“I… that… I am pleased that you think so,” Josephine murmured, her eyes twinkling slightly as she nudged Elena’s cheek with her nose.

Elena chuckled as she placed a hand on Josephine’s waist. She could feel the woman ease gently into her hold, a content sigh falling from her lips as she allowed Elena to hold her close. “May I?” Elena whispered, as her lips inched closer to Josephine’s.

A tension seemed to hang in the air, pulling them towards each other like invisible threads that joined them together. They pulled, tighter and tighter, an excitement growing in the pit of Elena’s stomach as Josephine closed the distance between them. It was a gentle kiss, as Josephine took Elena’s top lip softly between her own, sending a shiver down Elena’s spine. Their lips moved slowly, as though caught in a tentative dance, testing the waters before slipping into form and step.

Funnily, Elena could not remember Josephine’s lips feeling so soft before, as inebriated and terrified as she had been all of those weeks ago. Now, she felt as though she wished to savour every moment, from the way that Josephine’s hand slipped behind her neck, pulling her down and keeping their lips together, or the way in which she could feel the corners of her lips turn up into a smile. She felt so caught up in every sound, every touch, every single taste, that Elena could not help the whimper that escaped her lips when Josephine finally pulled back.

Josephine was staring at her with wide, unbelieving eyes before she giggled softly, shaking her head at the sound Elena had made. Another kiss, this time brief, was planted upon Elena’s lips before Josephine placed her head upon Elena’s chest, allowing the blonde to encircle her snuggly within her arms.

“Elena…” Josephine started, her breath tickling across her neck.

“I know… we have some things to sort out,” Elena responded, finding herself easing into the embrace, even as a small part of her mind still seemed to be urging her to run. She promptly ignored it however, it had gotten her into enough trouble already. “I want to take this slow, Josephine. I don’t want to mess things up again.”

She felt Josephine nod, her hair tickling against her chin slightly until Elena could not help the smile that pulled at her lips or the sudden lightness in her chest. Elena swayed them both slightly, causing another laugh to erupt from Josephine, her arms tightening around Elena’s waist and her face pressing further into her.

“That does sound like a good idea, yes,” Josephine finally said, turning her head so that she could look up at Elena. “And do promise me that you will talk to me, if you feel like you want to run again? Maybe I can help?”

Chuckling, Elena removed herself from Josephine, much to the woman’s surprise. There was a flash of confusion that crossed over Josephine’s face, before Elena held out her hand, presenting her pinkie finger out to Josephine. Perhaps it was the seriousness on Elena’s face or the fact that Josephine was caught of guard, that the woman laughed. A rich, melodious sound that Elena had found that she had missed terribly.

“I would not have taken you for someone who uses pinkie swears, ‘Lena,” Josephine chuckled, arching her eyebrow slightly as she regarded Elena’s outstretched finger.

“I used to do them all the time with my sister,” Elena replied, shrugging. “Are you going to let me make the promise?”

Josephine’s brow furrowed for a moment, before she looked up at Elena curiously. “You don’t usually speak of your sister? I… do not believe you’ve ever mentioned her at all?”

“Well things are complicated. Can we… focus on this for the moment? Please?”

Josephine frowned for a moment, planting a seed of anxiety in Elena’s chest. “Alright,” she replied, much to Elena’s intense relief. “Will you tell me another time?”

Reluctantly, Elena nodded, shrugging her shoulders in a dismissive fashion that she knew would probably raise Josephine’s curiosity rather than negate it. Still, thankfully, the issue was dropped as Josephine linked her pinkie with Elena’s a smile now replacing the frown on her face.

“I, Elena Melisandre Trevelyan, promise you, Josephine Cherette Montilyet, that I will inform you the next time that I feel… scared when it comes to us,” Elena said, smiling as Josephine giggled slightly.

Taking back her finger, Josephine stepped closer to Elena again, slipping her hand into Elena’s and lacing their fingers together. “That settles the matter then,” Josephine giggled, squeezing Elena’s fingers in a comforting manner. “Are you alright with this?”

“Yes,” Elena replied, shaking her head in amusement as Josephine stepped closer.

Once more, Josephine stepped closer, pressing her lips tenderly to Elena’s jaw. The blonde couldn’t help the smile that crossed her face as Josephine continued to kiss along her jaw. Josephine looked up at her, a twinkle dancing within her eyes. “And how about this?”

“We’re taking it slow, remember?”

“I know, Elena!” Josephine giggled again, wrapping her arms around Elena’s waist and snuggling once more into an embrace. “I just feel…”

“Giddy?”

“A little, perhaps,” she conceded, closing her eyes and nestling into Elena’s chest.

Elena laughed at the woman in her arms, walking them backwards until the back of Elena’s knees hit the bed. It didn’t take long before Elena found herself on her back, with Josephine cuddled into her side. It was a far cry from how she had felt earlier, lying down on the bed, when her mind had been filled with anxious thoughts and confusing feelings that had felt difficult to handle. Now… well now she felt a lightness in her chest and a slight tingle where Josephine’s fingers lazily traced patterns upon her arm. It was warm, cosy and completely terrifying. Yet this time, now that the heat of the moment had passed and her mind was entirely sober, that fear did not feel so encompassing now. Now, that fear felt more like excitement and anticipation for what would happen next. As though Elena could not wait to see what this fresh start would bring.

Truly, there was a part of her that wondered perhaps, whether she deserved this. Whether she should just tell Josephine that things would not work, that the woman deserved far more than she could ever give her. Yet, Josephine had chosen this. She had been the one who had made the decision to give Elena another chance and no way in hell would Elena squander such a gift.

Smiling, she leant down, kissing the top of Josephine’s head and enjoying the pleasant warmth that seemed to spread across her chest as Josephine’s arms tightened around her waist. No, what had happened before only meant that Elena would try harder, that she would allow herself to enjoy this feeling, no matter how rare and foreign it all seemed to her. For the first time in weeks, months, maybe even years, she felt content, lying within Josephine’s arms and wondering what the coming days would bring.

 


End file.
